Meet Isabel Almaraz

Today we’d like to introduce you to Isabel Almaraz.

Isabel, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Miami, where I started dancing at the age of three. For me, dance wasn’t just an extracurricular activity – I consumed dance, theatre, and the arts in all aspects of my life – dance was a family affair, and the family business. My mom immigrated from Colombia to pursue a professional dance career and my aunt was one of the founders of Ballet Concerto School, one of Miami’s first ballet schools that opened in 1961 and closed in 2016. I knew early on that I wanted to keep dancing and have a career in the arts. I also knew that I wanted to be a wife and a mom. As I got older, I understood that having both of these things would not be easy, but I have always believed that a career in the arts did not have to mean giving up on having a family. Easy, no! Possible, yes! Throughout my professional career (I received my BA in Dance Education from Florida International University) of performing, choreographing and teaching I have continued to make this very delicate balance work and am so blessed to have found the best partner to support me and do life with along the way.

Then, in 2010, I heard the term ‘Arts Administration’ used in the context of a career for the first time. I instantly knew this was the path I had been praying for – a way to combine the things I am passionate about, contribute to the industry that I long to see grow, and the next step in my professional growth. I received my MA in Arts Administration from Savannah College of Arts and Design (SCAD) in 2013 and transitioned from teaching to arts administration. For the last five years, I have worked with Miami arts organizations in various capacities – currently as the General Manager at GableStage (located at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables).

Additionally, as I prepared to become a mother for the first time in 2015, I realized how disconnected the arts industry and arts organizations are to women becoming mothers and having families in general. Really, its a trickle effect from the U.S. being so behind on family leave, support, etc., but there is a huge gap in the arts when it comes to supporting, protecting, and nurturing a balanced life. I am slowly figuring out how to chip away at the untapped niche of working mothers in the arts – performers and administrators alike (and working moms in general) to find where I can lend my voice, experiences, and support to move these conversations forward. I especially want to find a way to nurture moms, artists, and arts professionals in Miami, where the arts industry has grown exponentially in the last 20 years. It is exciting to see how far we have come, but there is so much work to do to fully reach our potential as a world-class city. I am here for it, for all of it! I want to see artists and the arts continue to flourish in Miami and I hope to be, even a small part of its story.

Has it been a smooth road?
Smooth? I don’t know the feeling!
I think anyone who willingly chooses a career in the arts, does so with the understanding that it will not be easy. Whether the path leads to being on stage, backstage, the booth, the front of the house, or the upstairs office, it is likely a very twisted road. Every discipline or role in the arts industry carries its own set of challenges, and having been through different variations within my career, there have been many! At this stage in my life and my career, I have become laser-focused on self-reflection. It is something I have always done – something every performer learns to do in order to grow – but now I have the clarity to apply it to every aspect of my life. Self-reflection has made me aware of my shortcomings, my strengths, and how I can change my mindset and behavior to overcome any obstacles. I feel that I can sum up many of the challenges I have faced throughout my career to a lack of confidence – I have always been an introvert and very shy. In fact, the only time I wasn’t shy was on stage. Confidence has played a role in every single struggle, decision, and step I have taken – in the past, stopping me from truly achieving my potential. Because I lacked confidence in myself, it allowed others to lack belief in me and overpower me – in absolutely EVERYTHING! I often felt invisible as a dancer (even though I worked steadily) and disrespected as a choreographer and teacher, but I now understand that my lack of confidence was what was visible to others, more so than my talent, expertise, or what I had to offer.

After becoming a mom, I discovered that I suffer from anxiety – specifically postpartum anxiety at the time. In the two years that I have been able to give a name to my overwhelming and debilitating feelings, I have come to realize that my lifelong confidence problem has been rooted in anxiety all along. I can pinpoint specific times in my life where I thought I wasn’t confident enough and made excuses for myself, and it was really anxiety taking over. It is not something that goes away, I work every day (some are easier than others) to keep the anxiety low, and my confidence high. The most important part of moving forward and growing is recognizing our challenges, wanting to work through them, and waking up with a mindset to be better every day. Dealing with postpartum anxiety is also one of the reasons I feel compelled and inspired to use my voice and whatever platform I may have to support and work with other women, moms, and artists to find balance in our journeys.

We’d love to hear more about your work.
In my current role as General Manager at GableStage, I oversee almost all aspects of the organization, including HR, marketing, grants, donor relations, performer contracts, education programs, and general operations. We are a medium sized organization budget-wise, but small in staff, so my role is very broad and I have a hand in almost everything. GableStage is also at the very beginning stages of an expansion that will double the size of the organization, in budget, staff, and venue size – after 21 years of being one of the leading regional theatres in South Florida, located adjacent to the Biltmore Hotel. As part of this growth, we are also focusing on spicing up our programming to add productions with larger casts and production elements, as well as more education and community programs and keep up with changing trends in theatre and in Miami. GableStage has always focused on producing relevant, thought-provoking contemporary plays that come straight from on or off Broadway.

Additionally, as I expressed before, I feel a strong calling to use my voice, experience, creativity, and career to connect with other women and moms in the arts industry, as well as all working moms. Share experiences, move conversations forward, inspire younger artists and arts professionals, provide mentorship and use whatever influence we may have to help promote balance and a sense of ownership and freedom in the path we choose for our careers and our families. I am not entirely sure what this call looks like yet – I have big ideas and some things in the works – but for now, I use social media to share my story – learning how to connect, engage, and use social platforms for good and for growth. Social media can be such an amazing and positive tool if used correctly but can be equally as dangerous and damaging if we are not careful. I have experienced both, and after years of letting it create more fear and anxiety for me (yes, at one time, it was a trigger), I am now loving the like-minded, goal-oriented and supportive community I am building through social media. Being an influencer is not equivalent to having thousands of followers, anyone can influence if they provide value and relevance to their following, and I have found an incredible amount of self and brand awareness, and so much healing through connecting with and mentoring other working moms and moms in the arts. As artists, as women, we pour so much of ourselves into our creative careers and/or our families, but all of those parts seem as if they are floating in separate bubbles, I am searching for a way to start connecting these parts and social media has been the first step in finding this niche.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I have too much to say about Miami’s arts industry, its growth, and its artists. To keep it brief, we have all the tools to be a city with a thriving cultural landscape. We are in way better shape than we were when I was starting my career and it is beautiful and exciting to watch. I won’t go into the challenges and reasons we are having growing pains (I wrote my thesis on this and could go on and on), but I feel strongly that we must nurture our young talent to stay and build their creative careers in Miami. There is potential for an artistic career here, but arts organizations need to focus on hiring local in order to entice young performers to stay. I am proud that GableStage has made hiring local talent part of its mission for over 2o years.

We are hearing so much about representation and diversity in the arts and Miami is the poster city for diversity. We have the talent here, so let’s keep them here! Audiences will diversify as they encounter art, artists and stories that appeal to them – so if we hire non-local artists to make local art and tell local stories, it sends a message to our talent that there is no place for them in the local arts industry – it forces them out.

From an administrative perspective, we do not have any local universities offering arts administration degrees, as this is still a fairly new and evolving career track (in the meantime, there are great online degree options in the field). I think this will change quickly (waiting for you FIU) and we will be able to cultivate great arts leaders as well as talent.

I cannot stress enough how much I love where the arts are headed in Miami! It has been a slow and steady climb and there are amazing things in store for the arts in Miami – so I encourage the community to go out and see a show, buy your ticket and watch theatre, see dance, and find a great nonprofit arts education program for your kids (we have some AMAZING arts ed programs!). Take your kids to see professional arts performances (often), and most importantly, encourage them if they have a passion for the arts – it is hard to live and work in this industry, but there are so many more options than we realize and it IS POSSIBLE to thrive!

Contact Info:

• Email: isalmaraz@gmail.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/Isadalmaraz

Image Credit:
Main photo and family photo: Leeana PS Photography

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